


Pretender

by aawake_atnight



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Song: Pretender (Steve Aoki and AJR), Songfic, insecure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-05
Updated: 2020-04-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:20:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23495188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aawake_atnight/pseuds/aawake_atnight
Summary: I love this song and this ship, so I thought why not. Hope y'all like it! It's fluffy, but I might make another chapter or two (not a songfic) about what happens after. Comment if that's a good idea!
Relationships: Alastor/Vox (Hazbin Hotel), Charlie Magne/Vaggie
Comments: 5
Kudos: 68





	Pretender

I'm a good pretender, won't you come see my show?

Alastor was never one to show emotion, dead or alive. It was much easier now that he was dead, because he didn’t really have muscles- not like when he was human.  
It hurt to smile as much as he did, back then. Now he could keep that smile on even as he slept. Of course, no one knew the real reason he smiled- hell, he didn’t really need to anymore.

I've got lots of problems. Well, good thing nobody knows.

Husker, his best friend, was the only person that knew that he was hiding something. He didn’t know what, but he knew it was something. Alastor had decided to get drunk with him one night, and Alastor didn’t have amazing tolerance for a demon, and got blackout drunk and crying on the cat demon’s shoulder. Husker was, also, the only demon that knew of the violent scars carved into his flesh- from above his elbows, all the way down to his ankles.  
Husker would never tell anyone, though, and Alastor trusted him.

Oh, I'm insecure, I'm insecure, I think I like what I'm supposed to,

Alastor ran his radio show, everyday scaring the residents of the Pentagram with his gory, cruel jokes and cheery, transatlantic accent.  
Many people found the unnatural smile rather jarring- all the better for him. That meant people didn’t ever want to touch him.  
It was funny, coming from the man that constantly invaded others space, leaning over them and close to them- but it was a power play. Something to make them nervous, to throw demons off their game.  
Another thing- Alastor needed to be in control, desperately.

I don't even mess with drugs- I do that 'cause you say it's dope to.

Alastor hated anything that could make him lose control. Alcohol, and namely, drugs.  
People thought he was on them constantly, when he most certainly was not- and all the other Overlords tried to get him to get high with them at the ‘afterparties’ of their little meetings.  
That's where he currently was- Lucifer forcing him to stay, then Valentino pouncing on him- drugs, alcohol, and whores in or hanging off each of his four arms.  
“No, thank you, Valentino, I am quite alright,” he said, giving one of his famous menacing grins.  
Still, the torment continued, and one of the whores dared to touch him.

I'm a good pretender, I'm not really cool.

Vox, on the other hand, was actually rather similar. He, too, kept up an act to hide his true feelings, though the reasons were quite different. He was the opposite of Alastor, too, at the same time.  
He was touchy, a trait he’d learned from Valentino when the older demon had taken him under his wing, when Vox was still new here in Hell.

I'm a good pretender, 'cause I'm just like you.

Vox was definitely more like Valentino than most realized- or, at least he acted as if that were the case. He acted like Valentino because Valentino was strong and Valentino was powerful and no one messed with the King of Porn.  
In life, Vox was quite the opposite. He was disliked, disregarded, and disrespected. Basically, he had been a nobody. He came to Hell, and decided to make himself the person he wanted to be as a human.  
So when Valentino found him, he had clung to the Overlord like a kicked puppy, wanting to be protected, wanting to be safe.

I do not belong here. You all clearly do.

With the help of the pimp, Vox quickly became quite the power, and worked up to the title of Overlord as well. No one would mess with him anymore, no one would dare.  
But, somehow, Vox felt as if he didn’t quite fit in with all these powerful demons. He wasn’t actually special, really, he just had a way with technology, and apparently piqued poor Valentino’s interest.  
He worked for the King of Porn, now, broadcasting his porn and whatever else.  
He also ran his own business- he had taken over the television studios, and now he ran all the shows and programming in Hell.  
All the more useful to Val, though, because that meant he got about 10 channels of the just-over-100 there were.

But I'm a good pretender, so I'm just like you.

Vox heard the loud scream, looking over to the commotion- Valentino and The Radio Demon. The latter of the two had suddenly sprouted larger antlers, turning to the poor whore leaning on him, practically buzzing with radio static, eyes transformed to radio dials. The deer demon was practically glowing red as the poor girl scrambled back to the ‘safety’ Valentino provided, the man scowling, though not daring to start a quarrel with the Radio Demon in his current state, and sauntering off.  
In a way, Vox felt for the deer- Valentino's girls were rather clingy.  
Though the reaction was quite interesting, the way he practically oozed ‘get away from me’. 

I'm a good pretender, I'm a good pretender…

A few minutes later, Vox found himself approaching Alastor with curiosity, flopping into the seat across from him.  
“Those whores are exhausting, aren’t they?” he scoffed, not acknowledging that he was interested in the demon. No, he made it as if he were trying to get away from Valentino.  
Alastor looked up, quirking an eyebrow, though being rather polite- to Vox, at least.  
“Quite. Valentino, too, the bastard.” he scoffed, sipping the blood-red wine from his glass.  
“Tell me about it. I’ve got to spend at least 7 hours with him and his hoard a week, and that's one where shit isn’t going down.” he said, and that made the other laugh.  
I look happy in every picture, just so you'd think I am.

That had been the start of an alliance, which eventually turned into a friendship.  
Recently, they had begun to get closer, and the deer was at his studio now, chilling with Vox in his office, laying on the black leather couch, while Vox worked, scrolling through programs quickly and muttering to himself.  
The faint blue glow in the room clashed with the Radio Demons red aura, but Vox found himself liking the man's style. He was quite attractive too- and certainly a flirt.  
Strangely, Alastor didn’t mind spending time with Vox, either, despite the man loving his picture shows. He usually hated being anywhere but his home, or the hotel, but this room was really an acceptation.  
Alastor wasn’t really reading though, smiled a bit more strained, grip a bit tighter on the book, air around him a bit more tense than what Vox was used too. Alastor was staring at the same page of his book, too deep in thought to realize he wasn’t alone.  
Vox had noticed, too, and kept a small piece of his focus on the obviously distressed demon. He didn’t question the other though.

I never say no to pictures, 'cause that's just the person I am.

“Al?” Vox questioned eventually, giving up on trying to work while his friend was giving off such a distressed aura. In some ways, he maybe wanted to be more than friends with Alastor, but with the demon's touch avoidance, he didn’t even suggest as much. Alastor was quite attractive, and the deer knew it too.  
Alastor looked up, tilting his head at Vox, who sat on the arm of the couch next to him. Alastor set the book aside, sitting up properly.  
“Yes, my dear?” he asked, smiling as tight as ever.

I'm a good pretender, all emotions in sync.

“You seem stressed.” he said simply.  
“Oh, Vox, you must be mistaken- me? You’re the one working all the time,” he avoided.  
Truth was, Alastor liked Vox too- more than in a friendly way, at that. He wouldn’t mind becoming more with him, as long as Vox would respect his boundaries, which he was sure the TV demon would.  
“You’re avoiding it.” Vox pointed out.  
“I am most certainly not avoiding anything, Voxxy,” he chuckled, watching him.  
Would Vox make the first move, or would Alastor have to? He was somewhat sure that the other demons liked him in the same way.  
Maybe he would take a chance today. He couldn’t decide- that's why he’d been spacing out.

Don't you think I'm clever? We laugh at all the same things!

“Bambi, please,” Vox laughed weakly. “Somethings obviously wrong so just-” But Alastor cut him off.  
“Do you want to go out to dinner with me?” he asked suddenly, looking at Vox with that same grin- though it looked more nervous.  
Vox paused for a moment.  
“Or-or somewhere else, I don’t know why I said that when you can’t eat but we could go to the park or torment someone-”  
Vox laughed, grinning. “Bambi, stop rambling. Yes, I’ll go with you- if you’re asking me on a date, that is.” he interrupts, quaking an eyebrow.

In front of the camera screen, I make it look just like a movie scene,

And that's how it started- they had been dating for almost 4 months now. Vox usually respected his boundaries, though they got more lenient as they got closer. And if Vox pushed him too much, well, Alastor wasn’t afraid to smack him. Overall it was… good.  
Mostly, Alastor went over to the television studios, because he didn’t really want people seeing him with Vox.  
It's not that he was ashamed, it was just.. he didn’t know how people would react. Obviously they would steer clear, but- well, Alastor was afraid to show a weakness such as love.  
He had let down his mask for Vox only a few times, but only when they were completely alone- at Alastors home.

Still insecure behind the scenes, though…

Vox put up a similar mask, though he was a little less hesitant to let it down. He had told Alastor- that he was a nobody, that he really didn’t belong. Alastor disagreed. That's when he showed Vox his scars for the first time- some of them, at least. As they told each other their stories, Vox and Alastor grew closer.  
That scared them both.

I’m a good pretender…

Angel Dust was the first to figure it out. Questions he asked Alastor and the deers vague answers, plus both Alastor and Vox’s disappearances from the hotel and the studio, apparently at the same times.  
He confronted Alastor about it first. Alastor was none too thrilled, but Angel said that he would ask Vox and Valentino- and Alastor was fully aware that Vox had most likely told Valentino, and that both would probably tell Angel.  
So, begrudgingly, he admitted it, and asked the spider demon to not tell people. Angel happily agreed.  
Alastor had trusted him with that.

I'm just like you,

Angel Dust had told Charlie. Alastor found out.  
He went to Vox, crying, trembling and glowing red, because he didn’t know whether to break down or to kill Angel.  
They knew. They would hurt Vox and hurt Alastor and people would try and take advantage of his weakness now. Alastor was terrified.  
Vox held him and tried to get him to calm down, telling him ‘everythings going to be fine, Bambi.’ and that he’d protect Alastor. He knew how frightened the other demon was.  
Vox was scared too.

Do you like me too?  
Vox was also afraid of losing Alastor, and people knowing he was weak. He trusted Alastor, because Alastor trusted him. They could be weak with each other. Alastor wouldn’t tell anyone the things he’d learned of Vox, and Vox wouldn’t do that to Alastor either.  
But in the end, after Alastor had calmed down.. It was fine. Angel, Charlie, and Vaggie didn’t care. Neither did Hust or Nifty. Valentino and Velvet had already known, because Val had demanded to know where Vox was going all the time, and Velvet was there at the time. He knew that neither would tell until Vox gave them the okay, mostly because he knew Velvet would beat Valentino if he did.  
It was fine. It was better than fine, actually.

Now I’m just like you.

They could be more open with their relationship, not everything had to be behind closed and locked doors. Valentino teased, as did Angel and Husk, but Vox couldn’t find himself caring. Alastor just flashed them evil looks, and eventually they stopped. It was just teasing, anyways.

I’m a good pretender.

Everything was good. Vox and Alastor were at the hotel, in Alastor's room, just lounging around together, when they heard the knock on the door.  
“Come in,” they replied at the same time, making them both snicker.  
Charlie poked her head in, looking nervous.  
“Uh- Al?”  
“Yes, my dear?”  
“My dad wants to see you both.”


End file.
